Thumbtack applicator



June 9, 1953 K. BYGBJERG 2,640,985

THUMBTACK APPLICATOR Filed March 22, 1949 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTDRTKARL BVGBJERG.

A T TORNE Y.

June 9, 1953 K. BYGBJERG 2,640,985

THUMBTACK APPLICATOR Filed March 22, 1949 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 22\ 10. I L11mm 22 2 2,5; L vvwvvvvvvu-za .INVENTORT KARL BYGBJERG.

ATTORNEY Patented June 9, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THUMBTACK APPLICATOR Karl Bygbjerg, San Francisco, Calif.

Application March 22, 1949, Serial No. 82,836

Claims.

This invention relates to an improved thumb tack applicator.

The primary object of the invention is to pro- Vide a thumb tackapplicator operable in the manner of the usual staple applicator andadapted to drive an individual thumb tack with each blow struck upon theoperating knob of the applicator.

Another object is to provide a thumb tack applicator in which a supplyof thumb tacks is carried in a magazine and which, upon striking theoperating knob of the applicator, operates to feed automatically a thumbtack from the magazine into position for proper driving operation.

A further object is to provide a thumb tack applicator in which thethumb tacks are fed into the applicator in overlapping head relationshipupon a readily removable carrier so that the tack carrier will notinterfere with proper operation of the thumb tack applicator.

Another object is to provide a carrier for thumb tacks to enable facileand convenient loading of a thumb tack applicating device.

Another object is to provide a readily removable carrier for feedingthumb tacks into a thumb tack applicator in overlapping headrelationship.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a device of thischaracter which is rugged in construction and relatively inexpensive tomanufacture.

The invention resides in the construction, combination, and arrangementof parts, hereinafter described in connection with the accompanyingdrawings which illustrate one embodiment of the invention, the inventionitself being defined in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of a thumb tack applicatorembodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section of the structure shown in Fig. 1,this view being taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1; i

Fig. 3 is a vertical cross-section of the structure shown in Fig. 1,this view being taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a vertical cross-section of the structure shown in Fig. 1,this view being taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the thumb tack applicator shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal cross-section of the applicating head sectionand a plan view of a portion of the magazine section shown in Fig. 1,this view being taken on the line 6-0 of the magazine portion of thestructure shown in' Fig. 1, this view being taken on the line 8-8 ofFig. 1;

Fig. 9 is a vertical cross-section of the structure shown in Fig. 1,this view being taken on the line 9-9 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 10 is a plan view of the removable thumb tack carrying strip usedto feed the thumb tacks into the magazine of the structure shown in Fig.1, this view showing some of the thumb tacks in place; and

Fig. 11 is a side elevation of the structure shown in Fig. 10.

The device shown in the drawings comprises, in general, an applicatorhead section 20 and a magazine section 2 I. The device is used inconnection with thumb tacks 22 which are provided with sharpened legs 23and enlarged heads 24. These thumb tacks, while made as individualpieces, are assembled together in overlapping head relationship upon along flattened strip 25 made of a flexible material, such as cardboard,so that they can be handled as a unit. This strip 25 may be placed intothe magazine of the device endwise so as to feed the thumb tacks intothe magazine, and it is removable after the thumb tacks have entered themagazine so that the strip will not interfere with the normal operationof the thumb tack applicator.

I The magazine section of the device is preferably made from a singlesheet of metal which is formed in the general shape of a box open atboth ends. The magazine section has upright parallel walls 26 and aconnecting bottom wall 21. The top Wall 28 and 29 is so formed that theinner edges of the portions 28 and 29 define an opening 30 slightlywider than the diameter of the sharpened legs 23 of the thumb tacks 22.This opening 3!] acts as a thumb tack guidin member and extends thelength of the magazine section 2|.

The top of the magazine section is enclosed by a cover plate 3| which isattached on the upper side of the magazine section 21 by welds 32. Aslot 33, the purpose of which will be explained later, extendslengthwise the cover plate 3|. A suitable hand grip 34 encompasses themagazine section 2| and cover plate 3|, as illustrated.

The bottom of the cover plate 3| is spaced from .the upper surface ofthe top wall 28-29 of the magazine a sufiicient distance to permit easypassage of a plurality of thumb tacks with the heads in overlappingrelationship.

A strip of thumb tacks arranged in overlapping head relationship isplaced in upright position in the magazine defined by the opening 30,the upper surfaces of the top wall 2829 and the lower wall of the coverplate 3| so that the lower surfaces of the enlarged heads 24 of thethumb tacks ride or slide along the upper surfaces of the top wall 28-29and so that the sharpened legs 23 of the thumb tacks extend downwardlythrough the opening 35 into the interior of the magazine section. Thesethumb tacks 22 are mounted upon the strip 25 in overlapping headrelationship as appears more fully in Figs. and 11. An opening 35 isprovided in the bottom wall 21 of the magazine section near to the endof the magazine section remote from the applicator head section 20. Thestrip 25 and its associated thumb tacks-are threaded through the openend of the magazine section and through the opening 35 so that the undersurfaces of the enlarged heads 24 of the thumb tacks 22 will engage theupper surface of the top wall 28-29. As the strip 25 is threaded throughthe opening 35 and moved to the left, as viewed in Fig. 7, the thumbtacks 22 will be withdrawn from the strip 25 and will be threaded, stillin overlapping head relationship, into themagazine section of thedevice.

The strip of thumb tacks so formed is fed to the applicator head sectionof the device by a pusher or feeder member 36. This pusher member 36 hasthe cross-section of a distorted I-beam with an upper portion 31, alower portion 38 andaconnecting web 39. The upper portion 31 extendsabove the top surface of the coverplate -3| and forms a convenientfingerhold for moving the feeder member 36 manually. The connecting webportion 39 extends through the opening 30 and the slot 33 and bearsagainst the outer end of the strip of thumb tacks 22. The lower portion38 lies within the main portion of the magazine section 2| and carriestwo springs 40 forvyieldingly acting upon the feeder member 36 to feedthestrip of thumb tacks 22 to the applicator head section of the device.The springs 40 extend around pins 4| and are anchored to themagazinesection 2| at 42.

When it is desired to load the magazine section 2| with a strip of thumbtacks 22, the pusher or feeder member is removed from the opening 30 andthe slot 3| so as to permit the strip of thumb tacks to have access tothe magazine. This is accomplished by providing two slots 43 at theouter end of the connecting bottom wall 2'! of the magazine section 2|.These slots 43 are spaced so that their center lines correspond with thesides of the lower portion 38 of the pusher member 36. Thus, the springs40 may belodged in the slots to hold the pusher orfeeder member indisengaged position as appears more fully in Figs. 7 and 8. After thestrip of thumb tacks 22 has been fed into the magazine, then the pusheror feeder member 36 may be reinserted into the magazine section withtheconnecting web 39 extending through the opening 30 and slot 33.

The end 44 of the slot 33 in the cover plate 3| serves as a stop whenthe'strip of thumb tacks is within a few tacks of being exhausted andthus prevents the feeder member from entering the applicator headsection20 of thedevice.

,The applicator head section of the deviceineludes an outer casing 45which is preferably made from a single sheet of metal in the generalshape of a box and which is preferably secured to the magazine section2| as by welding. The outer casing 45 of the applicator head section 20has side walls 46, a posterior wall 41 and an anterior wall 48. Thisouter casing 45 is open at the top.

Coaxial with and within the outer casing 45 there is mounted a cylinder49 which is open at the top and bottom ends. The bottom end of thecylinder 49 is secured to the lower wall 21 of the magazine section 2|and forms a discharge throat through which the thumb tacks 22 aredischarged one-by-one. The wall of the cylinder 49 adjacent the entrantstrip of thumb tacks '22 is cut-out so as to provide for entry of thethumb tacks, as at 5|, Figs. 1, 2 and 3.

The cylinder 49 also provides a bearing and aligning means foragenerally cylindrical driving plunger 52. This driving plunger 52 isnormally urged into the upper portion of the cylinder 49 by means of aspring 53 which presses against the lower surface of a hand knob 54,secured to the upper end of the driving plunger 52. In order to preventtoo great movement of the driving plunger 52 in an upward direction, areduced portion 55 is provided on the driving plunger 52. Around thisreduced portion 55, there is mounted a cap nut 56 which is threaded uponthe upper end of the cylinder 49.

The lower end of the applicator plunger 52 is provided with a cut-outportion 51 so formed that the bottom surface of the applicator plunger52 corresponds with the uncovered portion of the enlarged head 240i thethumb tack 22 which is in furtherest advanced position within thedischarge throat 50.

Spring mounted keepers 58 maintain the farthest advanced thumb tack 22within the discharge throat 50 until ejectment is desired. These springmounted keepers 58 are preferably made integral with springs 59 securedat their upper ends to the exterior wall of the cylinder 49, as at 60.The keepers 58 extend through openings 6| in the wall of the cylinder 49and are provided with slanting inner walls 62.

In operating the device the procedure is as follows. The pusher orfeeder member 36 is pulled outwardly beyond the far end of the magazinesection 2| so that the springs 40 lie within the slots 43, as appears inFigs. '7 and 8. A strip 25 carrying a plurality of thumb tacks 22arranged in overlapping head relationship is threaded into the magazinesection 2|, as appears in Fig. '7, and the strip 25 is withdrawn throughthe opening35 in the bottom wall 21 of the magazine section, whereuponit can be either disposed of or saved for reuse as the operator desires.The magazine is now loaded with a plurality of thumb tacks arranged inoverlapping head relationship. The pusher member 36 is then reinsertedinto the magazine section with the web 39 pressin against the outer oneof the strip of thumb tacks 22. This pusher urges the strip of thumbtacks inwardly until the most forward thumb tack 22 strikes the anteriorinner surface of the cylinder 45 and lies within the discharge throat50. The hand knob 54 is then struck downwardly by hand thus urging thelower surfaceof the driving plunger 52 to eject the forward thumb tackwithout urging the second thumb tack downwardly. As the forward thumbtack is urgeddownwardly the periphery of its enlarged head 24 contactsthe slanting inner wall 02 of the spring mounted keepers 58 thus urgingthe keepers 58 out of the way and permitting ejectment of the thumbtack. After the thumb tack has been struck home, the hand knob isreleased, whereupon the spring 53 urges the driving plunger upwardlyinto normal position and permits the pusher or feeder member to urge thenext thumb tack into the forward position. The foregoing procedure maybe repeated at will until the magazine is nearly empty.

Changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of theparts without departing from the spirit of the invention, the scope ofmy invention being defined by the following claims.

The invention is claimed as follows:

1. In a tack driver, the combination of an applicator head section, amagazine section for carrying a series of tacks in overlapping headrelationship with the head of the foremost tack partially underlying thehead of a subsequent head of the series, a discharge throat connected toone end of said magazine section and located in said applicator headsection, a feeder member for urging said series of tacks from themagazine section to said discharge throat, a stop for the head of theforward one of said series of tacks, said stop being defined by a wallof said discharge throat, and an applicator member reciprocable in saidthroat, the lower surface of said applicator member being shaped so asto contact the upper surface of the head of only the forward one of saidseries of tacks.

2. In a tack driver, the combination of an applicator head section, amagazine section for carrying a series of tacks in overlap-ping headrelationship with the head of the foremost tack partially underlying thehead of a subsequent head of the series, a discharge throat connected toone end of said magazine section and located in said applicator headsection, a feeder member for urging said series of tacks from themagazine section to said discharge throat, a stop for the head of theforward one of said series of tacks, said stop being defined by a wallof said discharge throat, an applicator member reciprocable in saidthroat, the lower surface of said applicator member being shaped so asto contact the upper surface of the head of only the forward one of saidseries of tacks, and keeper means for preventing discharge of theforward one of said series of tacks until acted upon by the applicatormember.

3. In a tack driver, the combination of an applicator head section, amagazine section for carrying a series of tacks in overlapping headrelationship with the head of the foremost tack partially underlying thehead of a subsequent head of the series, a discharge throat connected toone end of said magazine section and located in said applicator headsection, a feeder member for urging said series of tacks from themagazine section to said discharge throat, a stop for the head of theforward one of said series of tacks, said stop being defined by a wallof said discharge throat, and an applicator member reciprocable in saidthroat, said applicator member being provided with a cutout portion,said cut-out portion being arranged so as to provide relief from thesecond one of said series of tacks whereby the applicator member willcontact only the forward one of said series of tacks.

4. In a tack driver, the combination of an applicator head section, amagazine section for carrying a series of tacks in overlapping headrelationship with the head of the foremost tack partially underlying thehead of a subsequent head of the series, a discharge throat connected toone end of said magazine section and located in said applicator headsection, a feeder member for urging said series of tacks from themagazine section to said discharge throat, a stop for the head of theforward one of said series of tacks, said stop being defined by a wallof said discharge throat, an applicator member reciprocable in saidthroat, the lower surface of said applicator member being shaped so asto contact the upper surface of the head of only the forward one of saidseries of tacks, and keeper means comprising at least one spring urgedkeeper arranged to contact the edge of the head of said forward one ofsaid series of tacks whereby said forward tack is retained in thedischarge throat until acted upon by the applicator member.

5. In a tack driver, the combination of an applicator head section, amagazine section for carrying a series of tacks in overlapping headrelationship with the head of the foremost tack partially underlying thehead of a subsequent head of the series, a discharge throat connected toone end of said magazine section and located in said applicator headsection, a feeder member for urging said series of tacks from themagazine section to said discharge throat, a stop for the head of theforward one of said series of tacks, said stop being defined by a wallof said discharge throat, an applicator member reciprocable in saidthroat, the lower surface of said applicator member being shaped so asto contact the upper surface of the head of only the forward one of saidseries of tacks, and keeper means comprising two spring urged keepersarranged to contact the edge of the head of said forward one of saidseries of tacks whereby said forward tack is retained in the dischargethroat until acted upon by the applicator member.

KARL BYGBJERG.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 877,165 Borgerding Jan. 21, 1908 1,146,105 Sabelman July 13,1915 1,306,107 Elliott June 10, 1924 1,485,413 Johanson Mar. 4, 19241,588,989 Polzer June 15, 1926 2,009,580 Govanus July 30, 1935 2,014,726Flood Sept. 17, 1935 2,078,012 Newell Apr. 20, 1937 2,237,458 ThayerApr. 8, 1941 2,479,190 Wheeler Aug. 16, 1949

